Myths, half-truths and wives’ tales persist in medicine. Sometimes even doctors and nurses believe things that are not true or are at least are unproven.

That’s the focus of a new book, “Don’t Swallow Your Gum! Myths, Half-Truths and Outright Lies About Your Body and Health,” by Dr Aaron E Carroll and Dr Rachel C Vreeman.

Carroll and Vreeman, both from the Indiana University School of Medicine, have written a lot about medical myths and misunderstandings.

Here are a few medical myths that may

surprise you:

1. Cold weather makes you sick

In studies of cold transmission, people who are chilled are no more likely to get sick than those who were not. It may be that cold weather keeps people indoors, where germs are more likely to catch up with you.

2. Green mucus indicates a sinus infection

The importance of mucus colour is a medical myth even doctors believe. “There is no evidence… that antibiotics shorten the duration of an illness when green snot is a symptom,” the authors write.

3. You lose most of your body heat through your head

There is nothing special about the head and heat loss. You will lose heat through any uncovered body part.

4. Milk makes you phlegmy

In a study of 330 patients, nearly two out of three believed milk increases phlegm production. But it’s not true. In one experiment, volunteers were infected with the cold virus, and some of them drank a lot of milk as well. The weight of the nasal secretions did not increase in those who drank more milk, nor was it associated with cough or congestion.

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